The New York Post
relays leaks that Steve Ballmer might be willing to take
another look at Yahoo if it has new leadership (translation: If
Carl Icahn gets the board fired). This is presumably another
veiled overture from Microsoft, similar to Chief Strategy Officer
Craig Mundie's remarks in Indonesia.

The problem with this scenario, as dissident Yahoo shareholder
Eric Jackson points out, is that if a new Yahoo board is elected
with the sole purpose of selling to Microsoft, Yahoo will enter
the subsequent negotiations with little or no leverage.
Specifically, the negotiations will be led by a board that has
only one goal: to dump the company. Steve Ballmer didn't amass an
$11 billion fortune by not understanding what that means.
(License to steal).

If the best Carl Icahn can do for Yahoo shareholders is to say,
"Fire the current board and I'll get you a deal," most Yahoo
shareholders will tell him to get lost. (We would. We think
Yahoo's board blew the first round of Microsoft negotiations, but
the company is headed in a more promising direction than it was a
year ago, and firing the entire leadership would destroy any
possibility of an organic recovery.)

Want us to implore Jerry Yang to get his butt up to Seattle to
get a $33-$34 deal, Carl? Then make it clear that Steve Ballmer
would be willing to buy the company for that. We're not voting to
fire Jerry, et al, just so you can dump the company for $29 or
chop it up and sell the pieces.

Recommended For You
Powered by Sailthru

If Icahn Can't Get Microsoft Back To Table Before Shareholder Meeting, He'll Lose Proxy Fight

Microsoft is now suggesting that it might reconsider buying Yahoo if Carl Icahn gets the board fired. No deal. If Carl can't get Microsoft to the table before the shareholder meeting, he's not going to win the proxy vote.